Cover Image: Love & Other Disasters

Love & Other Disasters

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Member Reviews

I was excited about this romance but was left sorely disappointed. The writing style never pulled me into the story and the characters were not interesting enough for me to care about their relationship. I couldn't for the life of me get into them and never say any chemistry between them.

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This one was funny, heart-warming and genuine, all while focusing on relatable topics. The tension between Dahlia and London was there form the beginning. And the back and forth "will they, won't they" made everything so much better when it finally happened.

I thought the cooking show was a good change up in romance. And it made reading a lot of fun.

This was my first Anita Kelly, and I can tell you that I will be reading her work again!

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Love and Other Disasters
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️


On the surface, this is a dramedy style romance set to the tune of a cooking show contest. Dahlia, newly divorced and ready to spread her wings as a talented, but amateur chef vs London, whose no-nonsense demeanor and vast experience disguises their deep fear of having their identity rejected after an interview on national television.
The cooking segments are fine, but what the book really shines is as a free-spirited romp through the trials of finding and loving ourselves. A whirlwind romance of laughs and acceptance, reminding its audience love does not judge us for who we are.

Some spots are a bit cliché, and follow the typical diagram of every other rom-com, but there is a genuine sweetness and authenticity between the characters’ relationship I loved. The story of finding acceptance is one very personal to many in the LGBTQ+ community, but also speaks to humanity as a whole.
I’ll probably go back to my horror novels after this, but I truly enjoyed this sunshine ray of a book.

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What a heartfelt, beautiful romance that celebrates all the facets of queer identity and love. Dahlia and London are a perfect enemies to friends to lovers couple and I could read about them forever.

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Queer romance with nonbinary rep and a reality cooking competition show setting!? YES, PLEASE! SO GOOD.

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An unexpected and delightful romance read, with bonus foodie content. The tentative relationship between the main characters was lovely, and I was rooting for both of them throughout.

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This book made me so happy. Not only because of the story but because I have friends kids who now feel seen. It’s a cute yet heartwarming and emotional romance that gives you all the feels.

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This was so very good!
The non-binary representation in this book was wonderful!
I absolutely loved the reality tv cooking show and how it wasn't too much.
I really liked the side-characters and the conflict between them and the MCs.
Great read!

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I love books about contestants on reality shows, so I enjoyed the premise of this book. I think it has great nonbinary and queer representation but the pacing was a bit off. I'm not sure if I'm the target audience for this book and I do think it was cute, but it wasn't a home run for me.

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This book was such a delight! The premise of the cooking competition is what drew me to Love & Other Disasters in the first place – the Food Network is my constant companion – but the romance between London and Dahlia is what really stuck with me. The way they grew alongside each other and supported one another was beautiful, but that emotional journey also had moments of fun and romance and whimsy. Like a perfect recipe, everything was balanced and harmonious, leaving you feeling satisfied when it was done.

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I loved the representation in this book! I’m always a fan of a grumpy sunshine trope and this was exactly that and perfect! I loved the aspect of the cooking competition and was part of my favorite thing about this book.

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I was really drawn to the premise of this because I do enjoy cooking competition shows.

Dahlia and London meet on the set of the show Chef’s Special, each exploring their identity in some way. Dahlia is struggling to figure herself out after a divorce while London is in the process of coming out as non-binary to their family, show contestants, and the world given the platform of the show.

Both were compelling characters, but where this fell short for me was the connection between them. Because this takes place almost entirely on the show set, I wanted more about the connection between Dahlia and London. It happens so fast, and then the majority of conflicts have to do with the aftermath of show outcomes rather on the characters.

I also would have liked for the alternating perspectives to be in first person rather than third to get us closer to the characters and to also help differentiate the chapters more.

Thanks to Netgalley and Hachette Book Group for this digital ARC in exchange for my honest review.

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Well this book was delightful! It was the perfect cooking show book because it focused the correct amount on the show and more heavily on the romance. Loved this journey for Dahlia and London!

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This sweet queer romance between a recent divorcee and the first openly nonbinary contestant on a home cooking show warmed my heart. After initially getting off on the wrong foot, Delilah and London soon find that their chemistry on and off the show is undeniable. The choice of whether to start a relationship in the middle of a competition that could send either of them home at any time is a more complicated one. But a chance at love might be worth more than any amount of cash prize from a reality TV cooking show.

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This book was fine, I didn’t find it to be incredibly groundbreaking or all that interesting to be honest. The characters fell a little flat to me, the conflict seemed a little forced, and the ending seemed a little rushed. I thought it was just ok.

What I liked:
This cover is perfect. I love it, I’m obsessed with it.
The cooking show aspect was fun for me.

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I thought that this book was a fantastic read. As a lover of the Great British Baking Show and Top Chef this was perfect for me as it married both and added a complex and emotional romance.

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this was super cute! A cooking show romance, two chefs falling for each other, a grumpish/sunshine. The writing and plot were great but to be honest I was just not fully sold on the romance. I just didnt feel a connection between them as strongly as I wanted. The beginning started a little abrupt for me and made me feel like I was already being dropped in the middle of something. I still really enjoyed it and thought their banter was hilarious

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Ok Dahlia and London are just the cutest. The gender and sexuality rep in this book is great. As a cis woman, I don’t know first hand the struggles London experienced but I felt like they were represented really well. The cooking show trope was cute but I’m a little burnt out on food romances in general, they seem to be everywhere recently! Overall this was a really cute story with lovable characters.

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Love & Other Disasters by Anita Kelly is one special book! I cannot comment on the representation as I am not part of the queer community. What I can comment on is how the story and characters made me feel like a warm cup of tea on a cool morning wrapped in a blanket. I loved the friendship and eventual relationship between Dahlia and London. Kelly created a sweet and heartwarming story and I cannot wait to read more by them.

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This is the first queer romance with NB character that I have read, so I was very excited to get into it. I listened to the audio while reading the novel. I enjoyed both very much. So much so, that about 1/2 through the book I emailed the author to tell them about it! If you're a reader that likes cooking shows or similar reality based TV, queer romances, open door sex, and HEAs, then please grab this one. This author is now pushed up to the first read status for me.

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